Fastener inserting tools



Dec. 12, 1961 F. s. SILLARS ETAL FASTENER INSERTING TOOLS Filed Jan. 14, 1960 5 5' I/OI,

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T e E 2 -/a 5 F .5 20 25 w 6 ,23 i 1 M /V Inventors Frederick S Sz'ZZara Fog E Frederic/(sen 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 By their Attorney Dec. 12, 1961 F. s. SILLARS EIAL 3,012,247

FASTENER INSERTING TOOLS Filed Jan. 14, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 3,012,247 FASTENER INSERTING TOOLS Frederick S. Sillars, Beverly, and Roy E. Fredericksen, Danvers, Mass, assignors to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey filed Jan. 14, 1960, Ser. No. 2,489 8 Claims. (Cl. 1-46) This invention relates to fastener inserting and more particularly to portable, manually operated, floor nailing machines. Various machines have been built for assisting carpenters in the laying of tongue and groove flooring. One of the important requirements is that these floor nailers must be able to be loaded with nails quickly and with a sufiicient number to nail many boards without reloading. A second requirement, which influences the cost of the tool, is that the nails must be located one at a time in driving position without requiring intricate picking, separating and positioning mechanism. The second requirement has become more diflicult to meet where the nails are the relatively new, headed screw type nails having a helical thread-like shank portion as distinguished from the older tapered-shank cut nail.

The usual construction of tools for floor nailing includes a manually operated driver inclined at an acute angle to the horizontal for driving the nail through the edge of the board just above the tongue and thence into the sub-flooring. A magazine is included, generally in the form of a nail supporting column or passageway also inclined to the horizontal and toward the driver axis for supplying nails to the driver. Whether the nails are placed in the magazine by hand or loaded in packaged form, the maximum number of nails may be accommodated when their heads are in shingled or overlapping relationship. However, a problem is created in separating the endmost shingled nail from the one adjacent to it. This problem has been partially solved by the use of relatively intricate picking mechanisms which operate in sequence with the movement of the driver but these mechanisms have not only been costly but also not fully reliable.

It is one of the objects of this invention to provide a floor nailing machine of the above-described type having simple and eflicient means for presenting one nail at a time to a fastener driver.

Another object of this invention is to provide a manually operated floor nailing machine having a fastener supplying magazine of large capacity for accommodating headed nails with their heads in shingled relationship, which nails need not be glued or otherwise immovably joined one to another.

In order to solve this problem and as a feature of this invention, applicants have provided a floor nailing machine having a magazine with a fastener feeding passage for accommodating nails with their heads in shingled relationship which magazine is joined to a body member mounting a movable fastener driver. The driver passes through a throat at the lower end of the body intersecting the fastener feeding passage. A simply constructed, stationary fastener abutment, partially defines the throat and engages and positions one nail at a time in the throat in the path of the driver. The abutment is effective to maintain all other nails out of the throat until the endmost nail has been completely driven. As soon as'the endmost nail has been driven, the nail next adjacent to it moves into position either by gravity or by a spring follower which acts upon the upper end of the column of nails. The next nail only moves into driving positi n in the throat when the fastener driver has been retracted. Accordingly, means for assuring that the driver remain in the throat until the end of the driving cycle have been provided. Means for preventing the withdrawal of the driver prematurely comprise an eccentric locking cam and appropriate control mechanism which releases the cam automatically at the end of the driving stroke.

A frequent problem in the laying of tongue and groove flooring is in closing gaps between adjacent boards which are caused by the boards being slightly warped or curved. When the floor is laid by hand the operator generally strikes oneor more blows directly to the board being laid to drive it up against the completed portion of the floor. If the operator is sufiiciently skillful, the blows will be directed against the tongue and not to the top edge or corner of the board. Should the operator strike the top edge or corner, a dent will occur which will be evident in the finished floor.

Another object of this invention is to provide a floor nailing machine having means engageable with a floor board for imparting a force in the form of a sharp blow for driving the board closely against the adjacent board without the possibility of damaging the board at a spot which is subsequently visible.

. As a feature of this invention for accomplishing the above object, applicants have provided a nosepiece at the lower end of the nail driver which is engageable with the board being driven at a point below its upper surface edge or corner. In order to direct the blow to the edge of the board and not its upper surface or edge, the body portion of the tool itself is employed as the force transmitting member. Therefore, it is not necessary to remove the tool from engagement with the board. The blow is transmitted directly through the body portion of the tool from the plunger which mounts the nail driver. When the plunger has reached the end of the nail driving stroke, a head on its upper end moves substantially into engagement with the body. At this time, as stated above, the locking means would normally be automati cally released to permit a spring to return the plunger to the original position. However, as a feature of this invention applicants have provided manually controlled means for rendering the releasing means inoperative whereby the plunger remains in force delivering position with its head substantially in contact with the body of the tool and with the driver in engagement with the head of the fastener. By this mechanism, the plunger may be struck repeated blows which not only drive the board firmly up against the boards previously laid but with each blow the nail becomes more securely and deeply driven, thereby assuring that the board will remain in such close contact.

The above and other features of the invention including various novel details of construction and combinations of parts will now be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims.

It will be understood that the particular machine embodying the invention is shown by Way of illustration only and not as a limitation of the invention. The principles and features of this invention may be employed in varied and numerous embodh'nents without departing from the scope of the invention.

In the drawings,-

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a floor nailer embodying the invention with the driver shown in the position it occupies at the beginning of a nail driving cycle;

FIG. 2 is an end view of a nail magazine for the illustrative tool taken in the direction of the arrow 11 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-J11 on FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a section taken along the line IV-IV on FIG. 1;

Patented Dec. 12, 1961' FIG. is a section taken along the line V-V on FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a detailed view partly in section and slightly enlarged of driver locking mechanism employed in the machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the parts at the end of a nail driving cycle;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged detailed View of the driver looking mechanism; and V FIG. 9 is an enlarged sectional view of the nail abutment and lower portion of the driving tool.

The illustrated embodiment comprises a manually operated floor nailing machine having a body portion 2 and a magazine 4 mounting a handle 5. The body and magazine are joined by a web 6 and are secured by another web 8 to a plate 10 which is engageable with the upper surface of a work piece in the form of previously nailed tongue and groove floor boards B. On the lower I end of the body portion 2 is formed a nosepiece 12 which is constructed with a first surface 14a (FIG. 9) engageable with the edge of the floor board being nailed slightly below its upper surface and above its tongue. A second surface 14b is engageable with the edge of the board below the tongue and above the flooring. A recess or groove 15 is formed between the surfaces to accommodate the tongue. A relief recess 15a is provided between exposed surface of the floor.

A plunger 16 is slidable in the body portion 2 and mounts at its lower end a nail driver 18 and at its upper end a head 20. A spring 22'is compressed between the head and a shoulder 24 on the body, the spring being constructed to return the plunger and hence the driver 18 to the position shown in FIG. 1 after a nail has been driven.

The fasteners, herein illustrated as flooring nails N, may be placed in the magazine 4 either manually so that they slide downwardly of its length in a passageway 25 'by gravity with their heads in shingled relationship or may be preloaded in carrier strips S forming fastener packages of the type illustrated in a copending application Serial No. 852,560, filed November 12, 1959, in the name of Frederick S. Sillars, one of the present inventors; When loaded by the latter method, the packages are urged downwardly of the passageway 25 by spring means hereinafter to be described. By both methods, as the nails approach the body 2, their heads are in shingled relationship, see for example FIG. 9, wherein the nails are shown inserted in parallel relationship in the carrier strip S. The driver 18, as stated above, recipof substantially the same diameter as the driver 18 whereby when the driver-descends through the throat, as seen in FIG. 9, it will not be restricted by the abutment. However, the abutment is constructed with the cavity 34 of lesser diameter than the heads of the fasteners or nails being driven. In this manner the head of the endmost nail E will engage the outermost edges 33 of the cavity without fully entering the cavity, see forexample FIG. 5. This will position the axis of the endmost nail slightly oif center from the axis D of the driver but with a substantial portion of the nail still within the throat whereby approximately one-half of the total area of the head is positioned in the path of the driver. By so doing the nail adjacent to the endmost nail E will be maintained out of the throat 26 and hence out of the path of the driver and accordingly cannot inadvertently be struck by the driver. At this time the lower portion of the endmost nail E lies against a guiding surface 35 formed on the inner surface of the nosepiece 12.

In operation, when the driver 18 descends, it engages the head of the endmost nail E dislodging it from the abutment 30 whereupon it will. automatically become aligned with the axis D'of the driver due to gravity or by the force applied to the upper end of the carrier strip S if this method of loading is used. The point-of the nail gradually enters the work piece as shown in phantom line in FIG. 9, The presence of the driver in the throat prevents the next to the endmost nail from. entering the throat 26 or moving into engagement with the abutment 30.

Were the driver permitted to rebound each time a blow was struck, when the head of the nail being driven was below point X (see FIG. 9) which is the projected path of the nail points, the next adjacent nail would then be able to move into engagement with the abutment 30 and upon the next stroke would bedriven against the then partially driven endmost nail B. By providing locking cam means new to be described, the driver will not be retracted by the spring 22 until the nail has been fully driven; Thus, upon the driver being retracted the next adjacent nail is free to move either by gravity if the nails are freely loaded or under the urging of spring means in the carrier strip into engagement with the abutment 30 and the cycle is repeated.

Pivoted in a boss" 40 on the body 2 is a locking member in the form of a cam 42 to prevent the return move ment of the plunger 16 until the nail has been completely driven. The locking cam 42 has an eccentric projection 44 which engages a flat 46 on the plunger 16. A key 48 secured in the body 2 engages thesides of a groove 58 in the plunger 16 to prevent rotation of the plunger within the body and thereby to assure that the locking cam 42 always engages its flat 46 in uniform manner. Cooperating with the cam 42 is a manually adjustable locking 'plate 52. The cam 42 and its locking plate52 are pivoted on studs 54 and 56, respectively, and a double arm coil spring 58 surrounding the stud 56 urges both the cam 42 and'the plate 52 in clockwise directions (when viewed in the direction shown in the drawings) about their respective mounting studs. The locking cam 42 has formed on it a latch 60 which is contiguous to a rounded camming surface 62. The plate 52 is also provided with a latch 64 facing toward the latch 60 and contiguous to a similar camming surface 66. Spaced from the latch 64, the plate 52 is formed with a second camming surface 68.

'At the beginning of a driving stroke the cam 42 and the plate 52 are in the positions shown in FIGS. 1 and 8 with their respective latches 60 and 64 disconnected. The camming surface 68 is not in engagement with the flat 46 but rather contacts the outer surface of the plunger 16 adjacent the fiat. As blows are imparted to the head 20 of the plunger 16, the nail is driven in increments into the board, the camming surface 68 of the plate 52 moving down a camming surface 70 into firm engagement with the flat 46. The cam 42 readily permits downward movement of the plunger but as the spring 22 attempts to urge the plunger-upwardly the camming surface 44 on the cam 42 is urged by the coil spring 58 into a jamming relationship with the fiat 46 thereby effecting a monkey bite" preventing the upward or return movement of the plunger keeping the driver within the throat 26.

When the plunger 16 has descended to a position wherein the nail is substantially driven, a shoulder 72 at the upper end of the flat 46 engages the cam 42 and the next increment of movement causes the cam 42 to pivot in a counterclockwise direction against the force of the spring 58. This movement causes the camming surface 62 to bear against the surface 66 of the plate 52. The surfaces 62 and 66 are so shaped and located relatively to each other and the surface 66 so positioned relative to the center of the stud 56 that counterclockwise movement of the cam 42 imparts counterclockwise movement to the plate 52, the camming surfaces 62 and 66 sliding on each other. This movement takes place until the latch 60 snaps in behind the latch 64 as seen in FIG. 7. Thereafter, when the spring 22 attempts to retract the plunger it is successful because the cam surface 44 of the cam 42 is maintained out of engagement with the flat 46 by the force of the spring 58, it being noted that the moment arm from the point where the leg 58a of the spring 58 engages the plate 52 to the center of the stud 56 is greater than the moment arm from the point where the leg 58b engages the cam 42 to the center of the stud 54.

It will be seen that the body portion 2 is of rugged construction and in the completed driving position a shoulder 76 on the head 20 is substantially in engagement with the upper end 78 of the body 2 whereby driving blows administered to the head will be transmitted directly through the body 2 and nosepiece 12 and its surfaces 14a and 14b to the edge of the board below its top surface. Since the driver at this time extends from the nosepiece such blows not only will close the gap between the board being driven and the one adjacent to it but will keep the gap permanently closed because the nail is likewise driven deeper with each stroke.

To assure that a substantially rigid or solid column is provided for conducting the force directly to the board, the locking plate 52 is rendered temporarily ineifective or inoperative. A lever 80 extends upwardly from the plate 52 and secured to the lever is a projecting pin 82. The pin is engageable with a control member in the form of a spring detent 84 secured to the web member 6. When the pin 82 is positioned as shown in FIGS. 1 and 7, the locking plate 52 is in its normal or operative position. However, by swinging the lever in a counterclockwise direction to the position shown in FIG. 6, the plate 52 is rendered inoperative since the latch 64 cannot be engaged by the latch 60 on the cam 42.

Thus, if it is desired in advance to assure that the last few blows administered to the head 20 are delivered directly to the board the lever is preset in the FIG. 6 position. To release the plunger 16 it is then only necessary to move the lever back to the FIG. 7 position and to tap the head a slight blow which permits the plate 52 again to engage the cam 42 as shown in FIG. 7. A de cision to adjust the lever 80 need not be made at the beginning of the nailing cycle but this lever can be moved to the FIG. 6 position at any time prior to the shoulder 72 engaging the cam 42.

The means for urging the nails and their carrier strips into driving position against the abutment 30 will now be described. The magazine 4 has a substantially hollow irregular cross section, as seen in FIG. 2, and is provided with guiding members 86, 88 engageable with the nail carrier strips S to guide them down the passageway 25 toward the abutment. If a carrier strip is not used, the members 86 and 88 would be substantially larger than shown and engage the head of the nails. A follower member 90 also slides within the magazine and is guided by the members 86, 88. The follower 90 is provided with an appropriate handle 92 which projects from a slot 94 running lengthwise of the magazine. Attached to the follower is a flexible tape 96 which is coiled on a spool 98 which is pivoted on a stud 190 in the Web member 6. Urging the spool in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIGS. 1 and 7, is a coil spring 102. Thus, the spool at all times exerts tension on the tape which in turn draws the follower 90 against the nail carrier strip S to urge the nails into driving position. The tool is loaded by withdrawing the follower from the upper end of the magazine and inserting one or more nail strips and then replacing the follower to urge the nail strips downwardly of the magazine. 7

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is: i

l. A fastener inserting tool having a fastener feeding passageway, a driver movable along a predetermined path intersecting the feeding passageway, means for guiding headed fasteners toward the intersection with their heads in shingled relationship, a fastener engaging abutment rigidly mounted at the intersection having a rigid concave fastener engaging surface of lesser diameter than the head of a fastener and of sufiicient size to accommodate the driver.

2. A fastener inserting tool having a fastener feeding passageway, a throat intersecting the passageway, a driver movable through the throat, means for guiding fasteners toward the throat with their heads in shingled relationship, a rigid fastener engaging abutment forming a portion of the throat, said abutment having a concave configuration of suflicient size to accommodate the driver and of lesser diameter than the head of a fastener to maintain only a portion of the endmost fastener in the throat and in alignment with the driver and all other fasteners in the passageway completely out of the throat.

3. A fastener inserting tool having a fastener feeding passageway, a throat intersecting the passageway, a driver movable through the throat, means for guiding fasteners toward the throat with their heads in shingled relationship, a rigid fastener engaging abutment forming a portion of the throat, said abutment having a concave configuration of suflicient size to accommodate the driver and of lesser diameter than the head of a fastener to maintain only a portion of the endmost fastener in the throat in alignment with the driver and all other fasteners in the passageway completely out of the throat, sand driver being movable into engagement with the endmost fastener positioned in the throat, the presence of the driver in the throat preventing the further entry of fasteners thereinto, and means for maintaining the driver in the throat after the endmost fastener has been completely driven.

4. A fastener inserting tool having a fastener feeding passageway, a throat intersecting said passageway, a driver movable through said throat, a fastener abutment forming a portion of said throat, said abutment having means rigidly mounting it to engage the endmost fastener in the passageway and maintain a portion of it in the throat with all of the remaining fasteners outside of said throat, said driver being movable through the throat to engage and drive the endmost fastener, the presence of the driver in the throat preventing the entry of additional fasteners thereinto, an eccentric locking cam, means mounting said cam to permit movement of the driver through the throat in a fastener driving position and to prevent movement of the driver in the opposite direction, and means automatically operable for releasing the locking cam at the end of a driving stroke when the endmost fastener has been completely driven from the throat.

5. A fastener inserting tool having a fastener inserting passageway, a throat intersecting said passageway, means for guiding headed fasteners toward said throat with their heads in shingled relationship, a driver movable through the throat, a rigidly mounted fastener abutment defining the lower portion of said throat, said throat having a concave configuration of sufficient size to accommodate the driver but smaller than the head of a fastener where by the endmost fastener is engaged with its head partially accommodated in the throat in alignment with the driver, and the fastener next adjacent the endmost fastener is maintained out of the throat area by engagement with the head of the endmost fastener.

6. A fastener driving tool having a body portion, a

' for rendering the releasing means inoperative to maintain the head substantially in engagement with the body at the end of the driving stroke.

7. A fastener driving tool having a body portion, a

, plunger slidable in the body portion, a head on one end of the plunger and'a fastener driver on the other, means comprising an eccentric locking cam on the body portion engageable with the plunger which permits movement of the plunger in a fastener driving direction and prevents movement of the plunger in the opposite direction when said plunger is in any position, spring means for urging the plunger in said opposite direction, a locking plate engageable with the-locking cam to render it inoperative,

means efleetive at the end of the driving stroke when the head is substantially in engagement withthe body for moving the locking cam into engagement with the locking plate, a control lever on the locking plate, and control means engageable with the lever for maintaining the locking plate temporarily out of engagement with the cam whereby the cam will remain effective at the end of the driving stroke and the plunger will not be returned by the spring.

8. A fastener driving tool having a'body portion, a plunger slidable in the body portion, a head on one end of the plunger and a fastener driver on the other end,

means comprising an eccentric locking cam on the body portion engageable with the plunger which permits movement of the plunger in a fastener driving direction and prevents movement of the plunger in the opposite direction, spring means for urging the plunger in said opposite direction, means normally releasing the locking cam at the end of a driving stroke when the head is substantially in engagement with the body, manually operated means for rendering the releasing means inoperative to maintain the head substantially in engagement with the body at I the end of the driving stroke, means to guide headed fasteners into the path of the driver, and a fastener abutment adjacent the path of the driver engageable with the endmost fastener to maintain a portion of it in the path of the driver with all of the remaining fasteners outside of said path. References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,146,105 Sabelman July 13, 1915 1,178,619 Binger Apr. 11, 1916 1,241,996 Kristiansen 2.... Oct. 2, 1917 1,717,479 Wakemau June 18, 1929 2,078,012 Newell Apr. 20, 1937 2,525,637 Bell Oct. 10, 1950 2,640,985 Bygberg June 9, 1953 2,660,727 Thorton Dec. 1, 1953 2,768,376 Critchley Oct. 30, 1956 2,866,199 Freeman .Dec. 30, 

